Abstract Interest in possible clinical uses for psychedelic drugs has grown steadily over the past decade. Although impressive findings from small studies stimulated considerable speculation and provided a strong justification for further study of psychedelic treatments, until very recently there was a dearth of high-quality evidence for their efficacy, mechanisms of action, and appropriate...
Disclosures of Financial or Other Potential Conflicts of Interest: Dr. Barnett holds stock options in CB Therapeutics. He also serves on advisory boards for CB Therapeutics and Compass Pathways. He receives monetary compensation from DynaMed Plus (EBSCO Industries, Inc.) for editorial work and from Janssen Pharmaceuticals for consulting services. Dr. Barnett has received research funding from...
Research into the use of psilocybin for the treatment of psychiatric disorders is a growing field. Nevertheless, robust brain-behavior relationships linking psilocybin-induced brain changes to subjective drug-induced effects have not been established. Furthermore, it is unclear if the acute neural effects are dependent on individual heterogeneity in baseline characteristics. To address this, we...
In recent years, there has been considerable enthusiasm among research groups focused on developing novel therapies for treatment-resistant depression, and a wider community that has had experiences using recreational drugs, in more systematic evaluation of the therapeutic value of these compounds (Goodwin et al., 2022; Young, 2023). This has also been associated with advocacy for...
Survivors of adverse childhood experience are at elevated risk for psychological distress. In recent years, renewed interest in psychedelic medicine has highlighted the therapeutic potential of psilocybin for those who have experienced childhood adversity. However, recreational psilocybin use remains illegal and access to approved therapies is difficult. Such use provides an opportunity to...
The ego is one of the most central psychological constructs in psychedelic research and a key factor in psychotherapy, including psychedelic-assisted forms of psychotherapy. Despite its centrality, the ego-construct remains ambiguous in the psychedelic literature. Therefore, we here review the theoretical background of the ego-construct with focus on its psychodynamic conceptualization. We...
Globally, an estimated 260 million people suffer from depression [1], and there is a clear need for the development of new, alternative antidepressant therapies. In light of problems with the tolerability and efficacy of available treatments [2], a global trend is emerging for patients to self-treat depression with microdoses of psychedelic drugs such as lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and...
Background: Ketamine is an anesthetic that has been proven to treat chronic pain via clinical trials; yet there is a gap in knowledge regarding the impact of the concomitant use of ketamine and cannabis on pain severity. This study examined cannabis consumers who participated in a pilot Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) intervention study to examine pain severity. Methods: A subanalysis of...
In coming years, pharmacists will begin fielding more questions regarding psychedelic medicine, most notably with the imminent FDA approval of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) expected in 2024 and psilocybin for major depressive disorder (MDD) likely in 2025. Psychedelics are unique medications in many ways, but especially due to the mental...
Substance use disorders are a debilitating psychiatric condition which contribute to significant personal, legal and economic problems worldwide. Current treatment options, such as pharmaceutical interventions or behavioural therapy, are not always utilised or effective at reducing symptoms. Ibogaine, a psychedelic compound deriving from root bark of the Tabernanthe iboga plant, has shown...